The administration of US President Donald Trump has taken formal steps to block entry to the United States for foreign nationals it accuses of censoring American speech, specifically targeting those working in areas like fact-checking and online content moderation.
State Department Directive Details
According to a memo from the US State Department sent to overseas missions this week, consular officials are now instructed to deny visas to any applicant "responsible for, or complicit in, censorship or attempted censorship of protected expression in the US". The memo, first reported by Reuters and NPR, mandates enhanced vetting for individuals whose work involves "misinformation, disinformation, content moderation, fact-checking, compliance and online safety, among others".
The order, which State Department officials have not denied, will initially focus on applicants for H-1B visas. These are commonly used by highly skilled foreign workers, particularly in the technology sector. However, the policy is applicable to all visa categories.
Background and Scrutiny Process
This move hardens a promise made by Secretary of State Marco Rubio in May to bar entry to anyone perceived to be suppressing free speech, which he described as "essential to the American way of life". In a social media post at the time, Rubio stated that "foreigners who work to undermine the rights of Americans should not enjoy the privilege of traveling to our country".
The directive, reportedly sent to US diplomatic posts on Tuesday 22 September 2025, requires officials to scrutinise applicants' professional histories. This includes examining their LinkedIn profiles, other social media accounts, and media mentions for evidence of work in "combatting misinformation, disinformation or false narratives, content moderation, compliance, and trust and safety". If evidence suggests an individual was engaged in such activities, the memo instructs officers to find the applicant ineligible for a visa.
Reactions and Potential Consequences
The policy has drawn sharp criticism from trust and safety professionals. Alice Goguen Hunsberger, Vice-President of Trust and Safety at PartnerHero, told NPR she was "alarmed that trust and safety work is being conflated with 'censorship'". She emphasised that the field includes critical, life-saving work such as protecting children from sexual abuse material and preventing fraud and scams. "Having global workers at tech companies in [trust and safety] absolutely keeps Americans safer," she argued.
This is the latest in a series of actions by the Trump administration to restrict legal immigration. It follows a recent move to impose a $100,000 fee on new H-1B visa applicants, a measure analysts warned could stifle US economic growth and cause a "brain drain" to other nations. Many H-1B visa holders come from India and work in technology.
President Trump's stance is widely seen as retaliation against social media companies that banned him from platforms like Twitter (now X) and Facebook following the Capitol riot on 6 January 2021.
When contacted for comment, a State Department spokesperson said in a statement: "While we do not comment on allegedly leaked documents, make no mistake, the Administration has made clear that it defends Americans’ freedom of expression against foreigners who wish to censor them... In the past, the President himself was the victim of this kind of abuse when social media companies locked his accounts. He does not want other Americans to suffer this way."
